Volume 13 Chapter 216 Kujou Yoshimi, Unnecessary Intrusion
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
It’s been three years since Yukari ran away from home.
The middle schooler Yukari has now become a high school student.
”Ughh, I have to get a good picture of Yukari in her uniform…!”
The day before the entrance ceremony, I arrived early and stayed overnight at a hotel. With the telephoto lens camera I brought, I captured my beloved daughter in her school uniform.
I’m so glad I splurged on a custom-ordered telephoto lens just for this moment.
It cost around ten million yen, but if it’s for my daughter, it’s a small price to pay.
Behind me, Mom looked at my trembling-with-emotion self with a deadpan stare.
”You know, instead of wasting money like that, if you just talked things out and made up, you could take as many pictures as you want up close.”
”Ugh! Mother, that’s exactly what I can’t do! That’s why I have to take pictures like this without her noticing!”
Mom spread her arms out behind me and muttered, “Hopeless.”
Ugh… Mom says that, but every time Yukari and I meet, we just end up arguing.
It’s not like I mean to, but somehow, it always ends up that way. That’s why she left home in the first place.
Mom’s right—if I could just sit down and have a proper conversation with her, that would be best.
But what if talking it out only makes things worse? What if it strains our relationship even more than it already is?
What if she leaves Mom’s place too and goes somewhere completely out of my reach?
Thinking about the worst-case scenario keeps me from taking that first step.
”Hawawawa, Mom! Yukari’s in a movie! My daughter is in a movie!!”
”I know. It’s her second one already.”
Mom, you’ve only seen it twice!?
I lined up at 4 AM on the first day and have gone to the theater for 30 days straight!!
Of course, I pre-ordered both the special edition DVD and Blu-ray.
She’s just an extra, and she only appears in one shot, but in the special edition’s mini pamphlet, all the extras’ names are listed in the credits.
That was reason enough for me to buy it.
”Sigh… You know, instead of going to the theater, you could just come home and see her in person.”
I—said—no!!
I can’t do that! That’s why I’m watching her in the theater!!
You don’t have to say it out loud—I know that already.
Ughh!!
Yukari, who had embarked on the path to becoming an actress, quickly began to emerge as a star, eventually landing leading roles in movies and TV dramas.
Each time she appeared on screen, I would record her shows, head to the cinema, and buy every magazine with her face on the cover, not to mention collecting her DVDs.
”Ugh… I want to see the real Yukari, not just her acting!”
People really get spoiled when they start to find success.
It was great that Yukari was gaining more exposure as an actress, but the truth was, she wasn’t the type to jump into variety shows or those sorts of things.
I longed to see the real Yukari, the one who spoke and laughed as herself, not just the characters she portrayed.
That thought lingered in my mind.
”So if you come over, you can see her as much as you want! She’s staying with us right now!”
I—said—no!!
Exactly! If that were possible, I wouldn’t be telling Mom about it!
By the way, did you happen to get those photos of the real Yukari I asked for? Come on, show me!
That’s how I was managing to satisfy my yearning to meet Yukari with the photos Mom had taken.
”Mom! Who is this man?!”
Then came the announcement that Yukari would star in a drama called “My Honor Student Elder Brother,” airing Mondays at 9 PM.
When I saw the promotional poster, I was taken aback to find a man standing closely beside her.
I was so shocked that I fell backwards and passed out for hours.
”Who do you think that is? It’s Aqua-sama! Even a newborn baby or a hundred-year-old grandma who can’t use the Internet knows who he is. What’s wrong? Does your house not have Internet?”
”I don’t need you to tell me that! And yeah, we have Internet!”
That wasn’t what I wanted to know.
The real shock was how Yukari, who had always hated men, was co-starring with one!
She had a history of making her male co-stars cry, and some had even put out a request to never work with her again.
So, to see her snuggled up next to a man on a poster──nothing about that made any sense!
I immediately called the president of Beyond Production, who was in charge of Yukari.
”Could it be because of pressure from the office?”
”No, no… This was Yukari Kohina-san’s wish, you see.”
I listened to the president’s explanation and understood.
I hadn’t been interested, so I didn’t know, but apparently, this man belonged to an agency called Beryl Entertainment, run by Yukari’s best friend, Atori Ako.
According to the president of Beyond Production, Yukari saw this man’s acting and asked her best friend, Atori Ako, to offer him a role in the project.
What the──!
Even if it’s for your favorite girl, acting with a guy?!
I worry because of that incident with the scissors.
When Yukari was isolated at school, Atori Ako’s presence saved her.
What if this man ruins Yukari and Atori Ako’s relationship?
I was very worried about it.
But this collaboration with the man changed Yukari’s situation dramatically.
’Shirogane Aqua and!’
’Kohina Yukari’s!’
”All Night Japan!!”
My daughter, who had never appeared on variety shows before, suddenly started appearing on TV and radio.
She hadn’t even done any promotional work outside of her job, but thanks to Shirogane Aqua, she started getting other offers.
’By the way, everyone, one thing. Actually, just now, a staff member came to my seat and said, “Please be ready for the live broadcast in a moment.” That’s when, right in front of me as I stood up, someone opened their lunchbox and was about to eat. Do you know who it was!?’
’I was hungry, so it can’t be helped. It’s okay to take a bite, right?’
Hearing Yukari’s normal conversation with the man, my head almost went blank.
What had happened to Yukari?
Shirogane Aqua completely changed the image the world had of Yukari.
’Kohina-senpai, please don’t talk with rice grains stuck to the side of your mouth. I can see them clearly from where I’m sitting.’
’Huh? Where? But I don’t have a mirror! You, just…’
’Ah, there! Got it.’
’Mm, thanks.’
Why do you do that on a radio show without visuals?!
I gave the table a good, hard slam with both hands, 3 times over.
’By the way, speaking of rice grains, Kohina-senpai, what kind of rice do you like? Lately, I’ve been into Aomori or Yamagata rice, but I can’t the classics like Niigata or Akita, and the new breeds from Hokkaido or Miyagi are hard to pass up too. Not to mention, with recent climate changes, the rice from Kyushu, Shikoku, and the San’in region can match the quality of Tohoku’s…’
’Huh? Isn’t all rice delicious no matter where it’s from?’
’Kohina-senpai… Please apologize to the Japanese and the rice farmers.’
’But I’m Japanese too! Wait, isn’t it okay if it’s all delicious?’
The day after this radio show aired, there was a crowd at the supermarket’s rice section.
Could it be that rice prices would skyrocket on TV at some point?
Some whispered, but thanks to Prime Minister Habu’s switch from a reduction to an increase in farmland policy a few years back to boost food self-sufficiency, Japan never faced a rice shortage.
On the other hand, the brand value of the local rice purchased by Shirogane Aqua went up, and every time information about which rice he bought was shared on social media, the farmers from that area prospered.
Shirogane Aqua, that man, was extraordinary in every way.
The biscuit incident, the noodle incident, the udon incident──anything he was involved with flew off the shelves.
It was because he was so different from other men.
He was kind to everyone, and his presence satisfied and saved many women.
Plus, there were the achievements of other men changed by him, leading them to change for the better too.
”Gnnnnngh!”
Unlike most women out there, I was jealous of Shirogane Aqua for always showing off such a good relationship with his daughter.
I know it’s silly of me to feel this way, but…
Actually, watching Yukari look so happy, I know I should be grateful.
”Well, I get how you feel. You were trying to raise her to survive in this world, but Aqua-sama just went and changed everything! Seriously, Aqua-sama is amazing! He made a world where even girls like me, you, and Yukari can thrive.”
If I’d known this was coming, I wouldn’t have been so strict with Yukari.
Born into the aristocracy, Yukari… I just wanted her to have it a little easier in this world…
Hoping for that, I kept myself in check.
I desperately tried to resist spoiling my daughter, Yukari.
As the head of the Kujou family, I had to be strict with Yukari, who would one day become the heir.
But for Yukari, the Kujou family itself was an obstacle to her future, wasn’t it?
’Are you sure about this?’
’Yes. Please take care of Yukari.’
When Yukari ran away from home, I didn’t hesitate.
For my daughter, for Yukari to be happy, she couldn’t stay with the Kujou family.
So, I bowed my head to Mom and had Yukari registered under Kohina’s name.
This way, when Yukari started acting, the Kujou name wouldn’t hold her back.
Sure, using the Kujou name might have gotten her a leading role right away, but knowing Yukari, I knew that wasn’t what she wanted.
”Hey, Yukari seems to have mellowed out a lot thanks to Aqua-sama. Why don’t you try talking to her properly?”
”No way. What am I supposed to do now? I just watch her from afar, and she hasn’t seen me in over a decade!”
Meeting Shirogane Aqua, Yukari has definitely changed… no, a lot.
So, I should really be thanking him, but…
”Ughhhhh!”
I was so jealous when I first met Shirogane Aqua that I kept saying nasty things.
I regretted my own annoying personality as I lay in bed.
And so, he did keep his promise to me properly – he let me see my beloved daughter, Yukari.
It should have been enough for me, just that, but the 13 years I’d longed to spend with Yukari were cruelly snatched away.
[Kujou Yoshimi: Thank you so much for last time.]
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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